Hydroplane or horizontal rudder of submarine vessels



' W. REAVELL. HYDROPLANE OR HORIZONTAL RUDDER 0F SUBMARINE VESSELS.

APPLICATION FiLED OCT. I4, 1918.

Patented June 15, 1920.

Unirse stares PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM REAVELL, OF IPSWICH, ENGLAND.

HYnnorLANn on rionizcirriit nonnen or sunifinniirn vnssnts.`

israele.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 15,1920.

Application filed Gctober 14.1918. Serial No. 258,045.

ments in means for folding the hydroplanes" or horizontal rudders of submarine vessels into such positions against the superstructure or hull of the vessel as to reduce the resistance they offer to the progress of the vessel when running on the suiface, and for` restoring themv to Ytheir working positions when about to dive. rfhe main object is to provide comparatively inexpensive and simple mechanism adapted to quickly move the planes or rudders from the one position t0 the other.

According to the present invention, the planes or rudders are connected at their inner edges by pivots, which are parallel with the planes or rudders to the ends of a transverse rock shaft mounted in bearings on the upper part of the hull of the vessel and are linked to nuts through which extend lthe oppositely threaded end portions of a shaft that is held in bearings parallel to the plane or rudder carrying shaft, the said threaded shaft being rotatable so as to draw the nuts together or move them apart and thus fold the planes or rudders or turn them into their working positions, when the shaft by which they are carried can be rocked and the rudders tilted in the required direction without interferingl with the folding gear.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a section partly in elevation illustrat-ing the gear. l

Fig. 2 is a part plan view the lower half being in section, of the connections of the gear with one of the rudders..

Fig. 3 is a transverse section on the line A, A, Fig. l; and Fig. 4lis a transverse sectional elevation on the line B B Fig. l.

a is the hull of the vessel, b the transverse plane or rudder carrying rock shaft formed with enlarged ends h1 through which entend the pins c by which the rudders (Z are pivoted to the shaft 7),' e c are the bearings secured to the hull a in which the shaft Zi is mounted and f f are housings fixed to the shaft L by keys g/ and formed with hearings ,f1 in which is mounted a shaft '2l that coningsthe planes or rudders veniently may beactuated through gearingv comprising a spur wheel y' freely mounted on'the shaft b and engaging a spur wheel ic keyed on the shaft z'. llhe spur wheel y' may be rotated through hevel `gear Z and a shaft m as shown, or by worm gear. @n the oppositely threaded end portions of the shaft i are nuts n contained within the housing.;

reach nut is formed with trunnions al entending through slots in innervfalls ,f2 in the housings l, and pairs of links o ccnnectthe trunnions of each nut to a pin j) on the cor.- i

responding plane or rudder. ln the draware shown as fold,- ing upward or turning upwardly about their inner edges into` theposition shown at the right hand side of Fig. l, and. although for 'the purposes of illustration, the plane or rudder at the left hand side of tig. l is shown in the working position it will be understood that the two planes inove together into the working or stowed'positions; when in the working position a flat on the plane or rudder ahuts against a flat on the enlarge/d end of the shaft Z) as shown at ai, Fig. l. Y

'fhe shaft can be rodked by any suitable mechanism when it is required to tilt the planes or rudders; for instance a worm sector on the shaft and a worm actuated from within the hull of the vessel. Preferably however, there is keyed to the shaft Z) a lever g through an eye in which the threaded shaft e' passes freely, and the extremity of this lever is engaged by rod which passes into the hull of the vessel and is there actuated by any suitable mechanism to give the required tilting motion to the planes.

'lhe planes or rudders may be arrange-d to be folded upward into recesses in the superstructure, or they may he arranged to fold downward against the hull7 the parallel shafts and the link connections being ar ranged accordingly.

YWhat l claim is l. Hydroplanes or horizontal rudders for submarine vessels connected at their inner edges by pivots, which are parallel with the planes or rudders to the ends of a common transverse rock shaft mounted in bearings on the upper part of the hull of the vessel, in combination. with means for rocking said shaft and means for turning the planes or rudders about their inner edge pivots into and out of their working positions, substantially as described.

2. Hydroplanes or horizontalrudders of submarine Vessels connected by pivots Which are parallel With the planes or rudders to the ends of atransverse rock shaft mounted Y in bearings on the upper part of the hull of the vessel and'linked to nuts through which extend the oppositely threaded end portions of'a shaft that is'held in bearings parallel to.

the planel or rudder carrying shaft, the said threaded shaft being rotatable so asV to draw the nuts together or nieve them apart and thus turn the planes orrudders about their pivots" out of or into their Working positions substantially as described.

3.. l'lydroplanes or horizontal rudders of submarinevessels pivoted to the ends of a transverse rock shaft mounted in bearings on the upper part of the hull ofthe-vessel and linked to'nuts through which extend the oppositely threaded end portions of a shaft that is held` in bearings parallel'to the plane or rudder "carrying shaft, the said threaded shaft being rotatable so as to dran7 the nuts together or Vmove them apart and thus foldY the planesor ruddersor turn them into their Y Working positions by means of gearing coniprising intermeshing spur gears, the one freely mounted on'the plane or rudder carrying shaft and V-adaptedfto be actuated through suitable gears and the other fixed to the threaded shaft, substantially as described.

4. The combination of hydroplanes or horizontal rudders of a submarine vessel with a'transverse rock shaft to the ends of which said hydroplanes or rudders are pivoted, bearings on the upper part of thehull of the vessel in which said shaft is mounted,

nuts to Which the planes or rudders arev Y for rockingV the transverse rock shaft, sub-V stantially as deseribed,V

Signed at Ipswich, Suffolk, England, this 19th day 'of Sept., 1,918,

' WILLIAM REAVELL. 

